Darden executive exercises options, sells 5,091 shares

Accepted by SEC EDGAR 04/07/2026 - 11:21 AM EDT Learn about SEC filing dates

Rhea-AI Filing Summary

Darden Restaurants Group President Melvin John Martin exercised stock options for 5,091 shares of common stock at an exercise price of $124.24 per share and immediately sold the same 5,091 shares in an open-market sale at an average price of $196.0401 per share.

Following these transactions, he holds 17,270.15 common shares directly, including shares acquired through the Employee Stock Purchase Plan and its dividend reinvestment feature. The reported option grant, which fully vested in two equal annual installments beginning on July 24, 2022, now shows no remaining derivative balance from this award.

Insider Trade Summary

Exercise and Sale: 5,091 shares ($366K approx. pre-tax spread)

Exercise and Sale 3 txns

Insider Martin Melvin John

Role Group President

Sold 5,091 shs ($998K)

Approx. gross sale proceeds $998K

Approx. exercise cost $633K

Approx. pre-tax spread $366K

Type	Security	Shares	Price	Value
Exercise	Stock Option (Right to Buy)	5,091	$0.00	$0.00
Exercise	Common Stock	5,091	$124.24	$633K
Sale	Common Stock	5,091	$196.0401	$998K

Holdings After Transaction: Stock Option (Right to Buy) — 0 contracts (Direct); Common Stock — 17,270.15 shares (Direct)

Footnotes (2)

1. F1. Includes shares acquired pursuant to the Darden Restaurants, Inc. Employee Stock Purchase Plan and dividend reinvestment feature of the Plan.
2. F2. This option vested in two equal annual installments beginning on July 24, 2022.

Key Figures

Options exercised: 5,091 shares Option exercise price: $124.24/share Shares sold: 5,091 shares +3 more

6 metrics

Options exercised 5,091 shares Stock Option (Right to Buy) exercised on April 6, 2026

Option exercise price $124.24/share Exercise price of stock option grant

Shares sold 5,091 shares Common Stock open-market sale on April 6, 2026

Sale price $196.0401/share Average price for open-market sale of common stock

Shares owned after 17,270.15 shares Direct common stock holdings following transactions

Option expiration July 24, 2029 Original expiration date of exercised option grant

Key Terms

Stock Option (Right to Buy), derivative security, open-market sale, Employee Stock Purchase Plan, +1 more

5 terms

Stock Option (Right to Buy) financial

"security_title: Stock Option (Right to Buy)"

derivative security financial

"transaction_code_description: Exercise or conversion of derivative security"

A derivative security is a financial contract whose value comes from the price or performance of something else, such as a stock, bond, commodity, or market index. For investors it acts like an insurance policy or a wager: it can be used to protect against losses, lock in prices, or amplify gains and losses, so it can change a portfolio’s risk and potential return without owning the underlying asset directly.

open-market sale financial

"transaction_action: open-market sale"

An open-market sale is when a shareholder sells existing shares directly on a public exchange to any willing buyer, rather than through a private deal. Think of it like putting goods on a busy market stall where price is set by supply and demand; for investors it matters because such sales increase available supply, can put short-term downward pressure on the stock price, and signal changes in liquidity or investor confidence.

Employee Stock Purchase Plan financial

"Includes shares acquired pursuant to the Darden Restaurants, Inc. Employee Stock Purchase Plan"

An employee stock purchase plan is a company program that lets workers buy shares through small payroll deductions, often at a discount to the market price and after a set offering period. Think of it like a workplace savings plan that turns into ownership: it encourages employees to share in the company’s success and can create predictable buying or selling of stock that investors watch because it affects supply, demand and employee incentives.

dividend reinvestment feature financial

"and dividend reinvestment feature of the Plan"

FAQ

AI-generated questions and answers. How Rhea-AI works. Not financial advice.

What insider transactions did Darden Restaurants (DRI) report for Melvin John Martin?

Melvin John Martin, Group President, exercised options for 5,091 Darden Restaurants shares at $124.24 and sold 5,091 shares at $196.0401. The sequence reflects an exercise-and-sell transaction, converting an option position into cash while retaining a remaining common stock stake.

At what prices did the Darden Restaurants (DRI) Group President exercise and sell shares?

He exercised stock options at an exercise price of $124.24 per share and sold 5,091 Darden Restaurants common shares at an average price of $196.0401. This reflects realizing value from previously granted options that had already vested over earlier years.

How many Darden Restaurants (DRI) shares does Melvin John Martin own after these transactions?

After the reported transactions, he directly owns 17,270.15 Darden Restaurants common shares. This total includes shares accumulated through the company’s Employee Stock Purchase Plan and its dividend reinvestment feature, as indicated in the accompanying footnote to the ownership detail.

What happened to the Darden Restaurants (DRI) stock options exercised by the Group President?

The stock option for 5,091 shares, with an exercise price of $124.24 and an original expiration date of July 24, 2029, was fully exercised. Following the exercise, the derivative position from this particular option grant shows a remaining balance of zero shares.

How did Darden Restaurants (DRI) describe the nature of the share sale by its Group President?

The transaction is characterized as an open-market sale of 5,091 common shares at $196.0401 per share. It follows an option exercise, turning option-based compensation into cash proceeds while still leaving the executive with a sizable direct equity holding in the company.

AI-generated analysis. How Rhea-AI works. Not financial advice.

Form 4 Insider Transactions: What Each Field Means →

See more from StockTitan in Google Search and AI answers. Adds StockTitan as a preferred source · opens Google

Add on Google Not now

SEC Form 4

FORM 4

UNITED STATES SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION
Washington, D.C. 20549

STATEMENT OF CHANGES IN BENEFICIAL OWNERSHIP

Filed pursuant to Section 16(a) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934
or Section 30(h) of the Investment Company Act of 1940

OMB APPROVAL

OMB Number:			3235-0287
Estimated average burden
hours per response:			0.5

Check this box if no longer subject to Section 16. Form 4 or Form 5 obligations may continue. See Instruction 1(b).

Check this box to indicate that a transaction was made pursuant to a contract, instruction or written plan for the purchase or sale of equity securities of the issuer that is intended to satisfy the affirmative defense conditions of Rule 10b5-1(c). See Instruction 10.

1. Name and Address of Reporting Person^*

Martin Melvin John

(Last) (First) (Middle)

1000 DARDEN CENTER DRIVE

(Street)

ORLANDO FLORIDA 32837

(City) (State) (Zip)

UNITED STATES

(Country)

2. Issuer Name and Ticker or Trading Symbol
DARDEN RESTAURANTS INC [ DRI ]

5. Relationship of Reporting Person(s) to Issuer
(Check all applicable)

	Director		10% Owner
X	Officer (give title below)		Other (specify below)
	Group President

2a. Foreign Trading Symbol

3. Date of Earliest Transaction (Month/Day/Year)
04/06/2026

6. Individual or Joint/Group Filing (Check Applicable Line)

X	Form filed by One Reporting Person
	Form filed by More than One Reporting Person

4. If Amendment, Date of Original Filed (Month/Day/Year)

Table I - Non-Derivative Securities Acquired, Disposed of, or Beneficially Owned
1. Title of Security (Instr. 3)	2. Transaction Date (Month/Day/Year)	2A. Deemed Execution Date, if any (Month/Day/Year)	3. Transaction Code (Instr. 8)		4. Securities Acquired (A) or Disposed Of (D) (Instr. 3, 4 and 5)			5. Amount of Securities Beneficially Owned Following Reported Transaction(s) (Instr. 3 and 4)	6. Ownership Form: Direct (D) or Indirect (I) (Instr. 4)	7. Nature of Indirect Beneficial Ownership (Instr. 4)
			Code	V	Amount	(A) or (D)	Price
Common Stock	04/06/2026		M		5,091	A	$124.24	22,361.15(1)	D
Common Stock	04/06/2026		S		5,091	D	$196.0401	17,270.15(1)	D

Table II - Derivative Securities Acquired, Disposed of, or Beneficially Owned (e.g., puts, calls, warrants, options, convertible securities)
1. Title of Derivative Security (Instr. 3)	2. Conversion or Exercise Price of Derivative Security	3. Transaction Date (Month/Day/Year)	3A. Deemed Execution Date, if any (Month/Day/Year)	4. Transaction Code (Instr. 8)		5. Number of Derivative Securities Acquired (A) or Disposed of (D) (Instr. 3, 4 and 5)		6. Date Exercisable and Expiration Date (Month/Day/Year)		7. Title and Amount of Securities Underlying Derivative Security (Instr. 3 and 4)		8. Price of Derivative Security (Instr. 5)	9. Number of derivative Securities Beneficially Owned Following Reported Transaction(s) (Instr. 4)	10. Ownership Form: Direct (D) or Indirect (I) (Instr. 4)	11. Nature of Indirect Beneficial Ownership (Instr. 4)
				Code	V	(A)	(D)	Date Exercisable	Expiration Date	Title	Amount or Number of Shares
Stock Option (Right to Buy)	$124.24	04/06/2026		M			5,091	(2)	07/24/2029	Common Stock	5,091	$0.0000	0.0000	D

Explanation of Responses:

1. Includes shares acquired pursuant to the Darden Restaurants, Inc. Employee Stock Purchase Plan and dividend reinvestment feature of the Plan.

2. This option vested in two equal annual installments beginning on July 24, 2022.

Remarks:

martin2026poa.txt

	A. Noni Holmes-Kidd, Attorney-in-fact for Martin, Melvin John	04/07/2026
	** Signature of Reporting Person	Date
Reminder: Report on a separate line for each class of securities beneficially owned directly or indirectly.
* If the form is filed by more than one reporting person, see Instruction 4 (b)(v).
** Intentional misstatements or omissions of facts constitute Federal Criminal Violations See 18 U.S.C. 1001 and 15 U.S.C. 78ff(a).
Note: File three copies of this Form, one of which must be manually signed. If space is insufficient, see Instruction 6 for procedure.
Persons who respond to the collection of information contained in this form are not required to respond unless the form displays a currently valid OMB Number.
* Form 4: SEC 1474 (03-26)